How pro surfer survived shark attack
A professional surfer has shared the miraculous story of his escape from a shark attack, repeatedly punching the 1.5-metre bronze whaler until it unlatched from his arm.
Max Marsden was surfing at the remote Lucy’s Beach in Geraldton, Western Australia on Sunday, April 23 when he encountered the bronze whaler.
Biting down on the 30-year-old’s right arm, the shark began to thrash about in the water.
“His whole head and everything was over my arm,” Marsden told 7 News.
“There was so much blood in the water …”
Marsden repeatedly punched the shark, trying to force it off.
He then called for help from his surfing buddy of 10 years, Danny Williams, who witnessed the attack from the shoreline.
Mr Williams was able to fashion a tourniquet for Marsden’s injured arm using a leg rope, and the two paddled to shore.
Upon reaching the sand, the pair were confronted by another hurdle – the remote beach was only accessible by four-wheel drive, meaning the duo had to walk two kilometres to a waiting ambulance.
After Marsden was taken to a Perth hospital, multiple teeth had to be extracted from his arm, while surgery was also undertaken to repair muscles in his limb.
Despite the ordeal, Marsden is keen to get back in the water once recovered, telling 7 News that he will “probably end up jumping straight back in, but it’s gonna be definitely scary”.
The incident marks the first of its kind in Geraldton for more than a decade and the first involving a bronze whaler in WA in more than two years.
